UWindsor commits nearly $2.5 million to projects supporting University’s mission, vision and values

In an ongoing effort to support its strategic plan, Thinking Forward, Taking Action, the University of Windsor has committed nearly $2.5 million in 2012/13 funding for new initiatives and programs to improve the student experience, pursue strengths in research and graduate education, recruit and retain the best faculty and staff, and engage in and build community and international partnerships.

First established as part of the University’s 2009/10 operating budget, the Strategic Priority Fund has an on-going commitment to fund new programs that directly support the vision and values of the institution’s strategic plan. Among the 30 projects approved for the 2012/13 budget year are:

  • A Commercial Aviation and Aerospace Leadership Option in the Honours Bachelor of Arts in Liberal and Professional Studies program. This new option is in response to a growing demand for university-educated pilots and leaders in the aviation and aerospace industries;
  • The In/Terminus Centre for Research and Creative Activity will provide for a team of faculty artists and researchers to develop interdisciplinary, student-led projects and installations in the Windsor/Detroit region. In/Terminus will implement a series of community-based projects in Windsor in anticipation of the development of the Armouries building as the new home for UWindsor’s combined music and fine arts program. It is intended to foster greater working relationships with the community and with Detroit-based arts and academic institutions;
  • Funding to provide Field, Laboratory, and Demonstration Equipment for Enhancing the Environmental Science Curriculum and Community Outreach Activities. This initiative will involve the purchase of up-to-date instrumentation necessary for in-class and in-field experience and hands-on experimentation. The equipment will also be available to support talks at local schools and to the general public;
  • 4Winds, a project facilitating Aboriginal participation in post-secondary science, technology, engineering and mathematics. Participating students in grades six to eight will take part in science and technology experiences that are extensions of Aboriginal cultural practices in interacting with nature for health, food, shelter and energy;
  • Centre for Engineering Innovation (CEI) Live Building Portal Development, a project that will make the building’s innovative live building systems performance data available on the internet. Live building sensors that monitor the building’s bio wall, green roof, weather station, building wind distribution, and rainwater distribution systems, make the building a teaching tool that will be accessible to worldwide users through the portal project;
  • Funding for the position of Coordinator for Faculty of Science Outreach Activities. This three-year position will coordinate outreach programs for the faculty, including school visits, to support the Windsor-Essex community and raise awareness of UWindsor’s many research and teaching strengths in the sciences.

Provost Leo Groarke says all faculty and staff members are encouraged to apply for funding for projects that provide cost-effective ways to meet the University’s strategic objectives.

“We used a committee of administrators, students and faculty to adjudicate the grants this time around,” says Dr. Groarke. “I would like to thank the committee for its hard work and its commitment to new initiatives and the University’s strategic plan. I think it has come up with an exciting list of projects to fund this time around.”

Groarke says the Strategic Priority Fund has provided an outstanding way for faculty and staff to participate in seeing their creative ideas come to fruition and encourages every member of the campus community to take part in building UWindsor’s future.

A full list of this year’s SPF projects is available at www.uwindsor.ca/spf.